The authorities at the National Zoo in Mirpur, Dhaka, have safely returned to its cage a lioness that had got out of its enclosure. The Ministry of Fisheries and Livestock announced this in a press release, and the zoo authorities have formed a two-member committee to investigate the incident.

The press release, sent at 8pm on Friday 5 December, said security at the zoo was stepped up immediately after the incident and visitors were moved to safe shelter.

A specially trained animal-management team, after about an hour's effort, tranquilised the lioness with an injection from a tranquiliser gun at around 6.30pm and took her back into the cage at around 7.15pm. Her physical condition is entirely normal, and a team of veterinarians is keeping her under close watch.

The zoo authorities are taking the incident very seriously. A two-member committee led by Dr Md Boyjar Rahman, director (administration) of the Department of Livestock Services, has been formed to find out how the lioness got out of the cage. The other member is Md Shariful Haque, deputy director (farms) of the department. The committee will submit its report within three days to Dr Md Abu Sufian, director general of the Department of Livestock Services.

The zoo authorities thanked visitors and the media for their cooperation and concern, and said stricter measures would be taken in future to ensure visitors' safety.

Source: Jagonews24. First published in Bengali on The Agro News.